Photo By Maj. Nicole Ashcroft | Dragan Bogdanovic joins his younger grandson, Nenad, for a quick basketball game in...... read more read more
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SOKO BANJA, Serbia—Amidst the rolling hills of this rural Serbian town, nine U.S. troops have discovered the tremendous value of having a small, tight-knit community to provide support and assistance. These troops have deployed to Serbia in support of a humanitarian assistance project via the National Guard Bureau State Partnership Program. The Ohio National Guard and Serbian military, partnered since 2006, are working together to renovate a local elementary school, Mitropolit Mihailo.
The support they've received goes beyond the daily warm greetings, Turkish coffee, fruit and smiles—the locals also show up to provide assistance in renovating the elementary school. They do not do it for pay, they do it for their community. They do it to ensure their children have a structurally sound schoolhouse that provides them with an environment they can learn in for years to come.
Many of the locals come and go daily, but one local community member, Dragan Bogdanovic, arrived on site from the beginning and has worked beside the troops from dawn to dusk every day since.
Bogdanovic's many years of experience have been a tremendous help to the Ohio National Guard Soldiers renovating the schoolhouse because the Serbian method to rebuild exterior walls was completely different than American methods. Bogdanovic has been instrumental in bridging this gap by taking the time to train the troops on how it is done.
"So far it is going excellent. Everybody is working together and we are very happy," Bogdanovic said. "Yes, I have been teaching them, but they are such good people that you (want) to teach them."
In addition to rebuilding the exterior walls, Ohio and Serbian troops have been replacing the water drainage system and ceiling, recovering floors with wood laminate, insulating the ceiling and basement and repainting the interior and exterior. The troops have received additional assistance from Bogdanovic's two grandsons, Nemanja and Nenad, who he has been raising since his son's unexpected death four years ago.
"They (my grandsons) are also helping here. They are going to school here and they're also helping here," he said. "One of the (lessons) you have to get from the school is to help in general."
The work of the Ohio National Guard and Serbian troops and contractors, along with locals like Bogdanovic, have ensured a smooth construction process that will provide the children of Soko Banja with a environment in which they can focus on their studies.
"I am really grateful to work here and they (Ohio National Guard troops) are wonderful people to work with," Bogdanovic said.
| Date Taken: | 08.27.2009 |
| Date Posted: | 08.27.2009 20:29 |
| Story ID: | 38037 |
| Location: | SOKO BANJA, RS |
| Web Views: | 304 |
| Downloads: | 241 |
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